Contributions by Sam Vernon:

What did you think an artist would pick up on from your poem? Poet Nathan McClain: Firstly, shout-out to Sam Vernon for seeing what she saw in this poem; honestly, I wasn’t sure what an artist would understand or pick up on from the poem — never thought an artist would engage with one of my poems — it’s amazing! If anything, however, I would hope (and I think Sam discovered this) an artist would focus on tone and tonal shifts within the poem.

When you began this piece, was it color, shape, or some other aspect that you followed? Did that change?Artist Sam Vernon: Shape, line and shadow. How gray memory can be…

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Poet Nathan McClain is the author of Scale (Four Way Books, 2017), a recipient of scholarships from The Frost Place and the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, and a graduate of Warren Wilson’s MFA Program for Writers.

Collaborators’ Q&A What did you think an artist would pick up on from your poem? Poet Danez Smith: I imagined something brown & red in my head when I thought of the poem, those are the colors that I had in my head when I was writing the poem. What inspires you in this poem? Artist Sam Vernon: Abjection Did the visual artist refract any element of the poem that made you see the poem differently? Poet …